The Wow in Xiao Long Bao

Getting the soup into the center of these slurpable Shanghainese dumplings is easier than you think

By

Fuchsia Dunlop

Updated Feb. 8, 2013 1:49 p.m. ET

XIAO LONG BAO, at their best, are works of dumpling perfection. You use your chopsticks to take one by its twirled neck and dip the fragile bundle into a mix of dark Chinkiang vinegar, soy sauce and ginger before lowering it into the cradle of your china spoon. Pierce the dumpling with a chopstick, and out rushes a flush of savory soup. You sip this elixir before biting through the skin into a delicate pork stuffing. And then, in all likelihood, a dreamy look comes into your eyes.